Infamous anniversaries

Infamous anniversaries

Indonesian parliamentarians visit the CTBTO

A group of members of the Indonesian Parliament visited the CTBTO on 11 May to learn about the ongoing build-up of the verification regime - "The strongest team of parliamentarians that has ever visited the CTBTO" according to Executive Secretary Tibor Tóth. All supported Indonesia's ratification of the CTBT.

San Diego Operation & Maintenance Workshop

Experts from around the world gathered from 9 to 13 May 2011 in San Diego, California, USA, to hone their skills in operating and maintaining the CTBTO's network of over 300 monitoring stations. Since many of these stations are in remote and inhospitable locations, the system relies on station operators acting independently.

Infamous anniversaries

Before the CTBT opened for signature in 1996, a nuclear test shook - and irradiated - the Earth on average every nine days for five decades. In our new series, we highlight the most "infamous anniversaries" from this bygone era. Here are the most recent four in the series:

Berlin Foreign Ministers' Statement strong on CTBT

The Foreign Ministers of Australia, Canada, Chile, Germany, Japan, Mexico, the Netherlands, Poland, Turkey and the United Arab Emirates declared: "...an effective end to nuclear testing will enhance and not weaken our national as well as global security and would significantly bolster the global non-proliferation and disarmament regime." (German Foreign Office)

ACA Annual Meeting: Focus on CTBT

U.S. Senators Casey and Shaheen, State Representative Wilcox and Under Secretary Tauscher (image) were amongst the speakers. (Arms Control Association)

See the videos from the ACA meeting here and read the related article here.

The human cost of Soviet nuclear testing

Between 1949 and 1990 the Soviet Union conducted a total of 715 tests, of which 456 were in Semipalatinsk. The documentary "After the Apocalypse" explores the impact of radiation from Soviet-era nuclear weapons tests in Kazakhstan. New Scientist interviewed the director, Antony Butts, about the making of the film. (The New Scientist)

FAS podcast: A discussion on the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty in 2011

Dr Pierce Corden is interviewed by his colleagues at the Federation of American Scientists (FAS).

Listen here or read here an analysis by one of the world's leading experts on the CTBT.

Gary Samore interview

Gary Samore, Special Assistant to the U.S. President and White House Coordinator for Arms Control and Weapons of Mass Destruction, Proliferation, and Terrorism, said that the CTBT "serves U.S. national security interests by giving us one tool to help constrain the nuclear buildup in Asia. I do believe that if the U.S. ratified the CTBT, it's likely that China, India, and Pakistan would all ratify." (Arms Control Today)